On 27 October, a Task Force of the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism (ICCA), made up of parliamentarians from around the world, joined by Internet and civil rights experts, scholars and NGO representatives, will conduct a London hearing in the Houses of Parliament on the nature and scope of Internet hate.
The hearing will focus on types of hate speech appearing on the Internet, the various online media through which it appears and the regional aspects on online hate around the world. The effects of Internet hate on people, including its role in fostering hate crimes, also will be explored with testimony from experts and witnesses. The Task Force plans additional hearings on steps to counter online hate, leading to a report containing recommendations in late 2012.
The Task Force was formed a year ago at the Ottawa, Canada Conference of the ICCA, a group of parliamentarians from around the world who, in setting up the Task Force, expanded the ICCA mission of fighting Antisemitism to fighting all forms of online hate.
The ICCA Task Force is co-chaired by MK Yuli (Yoel) Edelstein, Israel’s Minister of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs , who is in charge of countering antisemitism, and Christopher Wolf, a partner in the international law firm of Hogan Lovells and founder and chair of the Internet Task Force of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)
John Mann MP, co-founder of the ICCA and chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism will be hosting the meeting.
John Mann MP said: “Hate on the internet is a global problem requiring a global solution. I hope bringing Parliamentarians and industry experts together to seek out and highlight best practice will be another step towards a more tolerant online society”
